At Least 2 Dead and Hundreds Evacuated After Major Floods in French Riviera

By Becky Kellogg

Published Jan 20 2014 12:26 PM EST

weather.com

Major floods in the French Riviera have left at least two people dead and thousands more are stranded with no access to roads or electricity.

"Up to 8 inches of rain fell over the past 3 days in parts of southeastern France, causing flash flooding and sending several rivers out of their banks," said weather.com meteorologist Nick Wiltgen. "Fortunately, a drier pattern is settling in this week, and most rivers in the region have either already crested or are cresting Monday."

A 73-year-old man was killed in his basement and another man died when his car was washed away by rains. Another man is missing, last seen on his boat.

The region that was flooded is part of the Var area, which is along the Mediterranean coast and is popular with tourists. Roads are washed out leading to some resort towns, including Saint-Tropez, and villages in Provence.

Evacuations are underway, but local officials are telling people to stay indoors until rescuers can reach them.

In an interview with Agence France Presse, a local resident told how from her home she saw a huge wave sweep her empty car away before she was evacuated by helicopter with her five-year-old daughter.

"It was really staggering," she said. "We had called the fire brigade who told us to move the furniture upstairs. We had very little time, the house flooded very quickly."

The French prime minister will be touring the destruction Monday.

"This is the same slow-moving low pressure system that has been bringing flooding and mudslides to Italy over the past several days," said Wiltgen.

A train was partially derailed by a landslide in the Italian province of Liguria Friday. The same system that brought floods to France are also battering Italy.